BOTTOM
LINE:
The
film has some good atmospheric moments, but it relies on stereotypical
conventions that do not gel well at all with the overall story,
all despite an ending which almost makes up for that unevenness.
THE
GOOD: The
film starts with lead character Anna (Browning) telling her psychiatrist
about a recurring dream she is having. Needless to say, it is spooky.
On advice from her psychiatrist, she returns home for the first
time in many months after a tragic explosion at her home killed
her mother. She reunites with her sister Alex (Kebbel), and the
pair are jointly upset with their father Steven (Strathairn) and
his new relationship with Rachel (Elizabeth Banks), who was her
mother’s live-in nurse when she was sick. Events start to
spiral out of control after the sisters discover that Rachel is
not who she says she is and starts becoming much more nasty and
violent. The film offers some good atmospheric moments, particularly
with Anna’s visions, and the cast are very good, particularly
Elizabeth Banks who effectively portrays a menacing and manipulative
character. The film moves through some interesting plot twists,
but perhaps the film is mostly boosted by its ending, which you
cannot really say is a twist, but it definitely casts a whole different
light on what you are seeing and makes complete sense. “The
Uninvited” is a different take on the usual horror film, and
does a decent enough job of supplying the scares and offering an
insight in to madness.
